


Drowning Lessons

by writing_good_vibes



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Angst, Artistic Liberties, Childhood Memories, Drowning, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Hux Backstory, Hux-centric, Kylo Ren Backstory, Possibly OOC, Possibly Pre-Slash, Pre-Slash, Pre-Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Rescue, Sad, The Force, probably underestimated hux
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-20
Updated: 2018-06-20
Packaged: 2019-05-26 01:18:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 1,600
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14989601
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/writing_good_vibes/pseuds/writing_good_vibes
Summary: The shuttle jolted and creaked as it hurtled towards the surface of it’s hastily chosen destination.“This is all your fault, Ren!”





	1. Before

Whilst on routine inspection of the Harbinger, a rogue squadron of Resistance fighters began an assault. Nothing the First Order couldn't handle, a few rebel pilots. The Co-comanders felt it best to leave promptly, leaving the Captain of Harbinger to deal with this inconvenience.

The trouble was soon realised, however, when Hux and Ren disembarked via the shuttle they had arrived on; an asteroid field lay between them and the Finalizer. Now out in the open, they couldn't turn back without drawing attention. Combat with the disadvantage of a transport shuttle, with only limited defense systems, was out of the question.

"Oh shit..." Kylo muttered, "Chances of navigating a field are 3720 to 1" he announced to Hux.

Hux sneered, "How do you know that?"

"Trust me, I heard it from someone." Kylo said, lurching from his own seat, "Let me pilot."

"Ren, I have training for this, I'm perfectly capable-"

"No, listen! Let me pilot, you'll never make it back to the Finalizer through this," Kylo insisted, lurking behind Hux's seat, "Believe me, I can."

With an indignant sigh, Hux stood up and allowed Kylo to seize the controls.

Ren was a surprisingly better pilot than Hux had anticipated, despite the break-neck velocity ("Buckle up, General") they maneuvered rather successfully around all major debris, no gap seemed too small for Ren to somehow swerve them through.

Of course, that is, until a unforseen stray asteroid collided heavily with the right wing of the shuttle, hurtling it into dire straits.

"Fuck, Ren!" Hux shouted, panic only mildly washing over him, "We have to get out of this asteroid field! Make the jump to light speed!"

"I can't!" Ren grunted, trying to regain a straight flightpath, "There isn't enough distance to jump, we'll hit something else before we can make it to hyperspace."

Hux exhaled loudly in frustration, still clutching his seat as they jolted and staggered to avoid more damage, Ren's grip threatening to tear the joystick from the console.

Analysing the plotted coordinates of the star map in from of him, Hux spotted a neutral planet. If they could make it there, it would take them from the asteroid belt and they could make sufficent repair to the shuttle and begin to plot a course around the belt and back to the Finalizer.

"We'll have to head that way," Hux insisted, recalling the coordinates, "it'll be easier to reach the Finalizer from there if we stay at the outer edge of the field."

"You're testing me here, General, you really are." Ren replied through gritted teeth.

***

It's safe to say that they tried, really, but at only 500 ft from the exosphere, another debris hit the shuttle, cracking the engine casing. Reduced power was an awful inconvenience. The thrusters failing, they began the plummet to the surface.

"This is all your fault, Ren!"

***

Hitting the water was like crashing into a mountain, the metal of the shuttle warped and buckled, flinging the two passengers to the rear of the ship, which was slowly beginning to sink. Water rose in the enclosed space; covering ankles, knees, hips.

Kylo, breaths heaving and erratic, arms raising towards the reinforced glass viewport, the lake engulfing them entirely, grunting as cracks began to form, scurrying like spider webs across the pane.

“What are you doing?” Hux yelled, fear being masked by his usual anger at Ren’s stupidity, “You’ll only let more water in!”

“We need… to get… out!” his words punctuated by gasping breaths. Kylo stopped, taking a large, calming breath, “Get ready to move, this water will fill up fast.”

Hux, eyes wide and panic stricken, tried to grab hold of Kylo’s arm, his fingers only just scrabbling at the corse tunic, “No, wait! Kylo, no, I can’t-”

The squeal of tearing metal rang in Hux's ears, the roof of the shuttle contorting and twisting away from them. Water cascaded over them both, rising until Hux could no longer breath.


	2. During

He faintly recognised the large, looming shadow of Ren above him, clawing at the water until he broke into broad strokes, gliding towards the surface, legs kicking in his wake. The heap of distorted metal sank far below them.

Desperate, Hux tried to force his arms and legs to cooperate, to find a rhythm that would begin his progress. Lungs burning from held breaths, eye lids fluttering, unaccustomed to trying to see in these conditions.

Now, Hux thought, is an acceptable time to panic.

Arms and legs thrashing, but nothing worked, Hux was moving, perhaps, a foot in any given direction but couldn't extend his reach beyond that. He was floundering.

No sign of Ren.

Hux tried to level himself, to think realistically what he would need to do to make progress, to pull himself to the surface. He atyempted to reach up, hands clawing at nothing.

The thick wool of the General's uniform was heavy, sodden and clinging to him, so his fingers trembled as he fumbled at the fastenings, frantically twisting in the water to pull the tunic from his shoulders.

With the shuttle and tunic long since receded into the murky deep, Hux was imminently running out of time. The corners of his vision clouding as his legs thrashed unsuccessfully.

He could no longer hold his breath.

***

Ren scrabbled to the lake's shore, damp sand soiling his long robe. Lying flat on his back, chest heaving, Kylo moved to unfasten his belt and, unbeknownst to him, peel away his heavy layers much like Hux had far beneath the aqua.

Hux hadn't come to the surface yet. Kylo didn't know if he should be worried. Surely Hux could swim, couldn't he? If Hux died, Kylo would have the whole Order on him, he wasn't mindless enough to not know that the Troopers held a strong preference towards Hux rather than him. After all, he did nothing but cause trouble and rack up countless credits in damages.

Ren heaved himself up from the sand, his damp chest cooling in the muted breeze, goosebumps prickling his skin. Staggering back into the water, he pushed away from the bank and submerged himself beneath the rippling pool, the chill washing over him.

As Kylo swam deeper, the weak light from above filtered lazily through the water. He could barely see a thing as he tried to find his way back to the sunken shuttle. Air bubbles spilled from his nose, drifting past his face as he swam deeper. He reached out through the Force, combing through the sensations around him to find Hux.

In the back of his mind, Ren felt movement, another presence, the strong waves of panic and the rushing of thoughts. He turned round, sweeping his arms through the water as he caught sight of Hux, red hair floating around his face like pond weed. Mouth open.

Kylo surged forward and grabbed Hux under the armpits, kicking his legs to heave himself and Hux's deadweight back to fresh air.


	3. After

The breach of the surface could be compared to that of a whale, the water streaming from them as Kylo, his arm tight around Hux's chest, dragged them to the sand.

Hux coughed and spluttered, water dribbling rather unattractively down his chin as Ren thumped him on the back. When he caught his breath he lay back on the sand and focused on his breathing, if only to avoid having to say anything to his co-comander.

The silence wallowed for a few minutes before Ren piped up, "You're welcome."

Hux looked over, a weak sneer forcing it's way onto his face, "I do suppose thanks is in order."

"So you don't know how to swim then?"

"No." Hux huffed out a breath, "To prepare for a life on Star Destroyers, the Academy didn't exactly prioritise swimming lessons, Ren."

"You didn't even learn as a kid?" Kylo asked.

"Obviously not."

Kylo looked back out across the glistening lake, the last ripples of their disaster settling. The low hanging trees on the opposite bank where thick and green, reminding him of the lush hills in his distant memory.

"I learnt to swim." He began, "I lived in a city, but we'd go out to the sea and swim, the water was like this, but a bit warmer."

Hux kept quite, the idea of Ren, the masked Jedi Killer, talking like he'd had a normal childhood, seemed beyond strange. It almost unsettled the General to know that before Ren there had been been a boy who relished his trips to the sea.

"Do you actually like swimming?" Hux questioned, unsure how one could actually enjoy having to exert energy just to keep from sinking.

"I suppose. I haven't gotten the chance since I was 11. But I liked it back then."

Hux had never been on any trips. A life spent on Arkanis, even in spite of it's cold rains, and in the confines on the Academy didn't lend to the sort of leisure that Ren experienced.

After a moment, Kylo spoke again, "Was it scary? Nearly drowning?"

"I didn't nearly drown!" Hux insisted, although he had, and it was dawning on him that this may be a rather prominent weakness.

Kylo's lip quirked up, barely noticeable, "Of course not. The great general could hardly fall victim to a bit of water."

Hux did not like to be mocked. But he felt it only fair to let Ren have his fun, for having saved his life.

"I don't think they'd have let me drown. They thought I was too important."

"They're cared too much?"

Kylo leant back, elbows digging into the corse sand, "Something like that."

**Author's Note:**

> a Star Wars fic with just a bit of angst. I took some artistic licence with FO logistics and blueprints and basically everything, because I know very little about galactic military procedure. Hope you enjoyed anyway!


End file.
